Not Your Reality
by Lady In Shadows
Summary: When a dimension hopper for Millennium decides it's time to move on, she gives the crew of the Normandy quite a shock. She then proceeds to get shot, thrown at walls, and put in other uncomfortable- and sometimes painful- positions. Thane/Shep Please R&R!
1. Prologue: An Intro To Darklings

Disclaimer: I do not own Champions or Mass Effect. I am but a hapless gamer with a penchant for writing. I make no money off this, and only own Maranka and her kind!

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><p>A note from the Shadows: I am going to assume that you want to know what to expect, yes? Well, be prepared for madness, a little dimension hopping, lotsa Thane-Shep romance, and maybe Tali-Legion romance. Most importantly, there will be friendship, there will be violence, and there will be the Game!<p>

…..Which I just lost. Crap.

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><p>[Prologue: An intro To Darklings]<p>

First off, I would like to make it clear that I am neither human, nor elf. I am a -Darkling-. I know we look like Drow, but we are most certaintly not! We... may be related, though. I think. I've always been kinda sketchy on those details, never really cared.  
>Darklings have black skin. No, not brown, actual black. Has to do with the fact that our blood is black. I think. Again, not sure. Never really cared.<br>Darklings have markings, from the base of our neck, and down our arms. Different darklings have different markings. For instance, juviniles like myself- darklings in that period of bodily stasis between ages 50-150- have thin, dark markings that go down to our arms, while Archons have thick, moving markings that go down past their wrists.  
>We also have glowing eyes. Like humans, we have multiple eye colors, though we do have more than humans. It is not uncommon to see darklings with purple, red, or even black eyes. Our pupils are slitted, like a cats.<br>My own eyes are deep purple, like my mother's, while my markings, like every darkling in my clan, are a dark green. I have a long cut over my right eye- two years later, and it -still- hasn't healed over. I can probably blame that on blood magic, though. Yeah, evil little sister in laws can be bitches. I've got about twenty-two years left before I'm considered an adult, I believe.  
>Not that I <em>care,<em> mind you. I dealt away with that load of bull about a hundred years back. It's not a tale I care to tell right now, however. In fact, it's not a tale I care to tell ever. It has a lot to do with how my society works.  
>Woman in my society are... Pretty much toys. We don't have the freedoms that the men do, and we have to work twice as hard for half of the respect. We have little to know choice in whom we marry, and we are... Much shorter then our male counterparts.<br>All darklings can teleport, though nobles are the ones who mainly lower themselves to such acts. Admittedly, a noble myself, I am rather bad about it. But when you're running for your life? It's the fastest way to travel. Part of out ability to teleport relies on our ability to travel across deminsions in the blink of an eye. This ability is, in fact, the only reason our homeworld has yet to become over populated. We may only have four or five children in a lifetime, each, but we can live for thousands of years. Most darklings leave our home dimension at age two hundred, not returning until nearly four hundred. Again, I am... A bit of an oddball there. Like I said, not getting into it.  
>Darklings live in one large plane, that is pretty much one big forest. The official name is kinda lost- not even the ruling families remember it- but most just call it the Dark Forest. It's divided into four quadrants- North, east, south, and west. My family ruled the west. Each quadrant had it's own guardian spirit, a deity, of sorts. The west had Lady Truande, a peaceful, but powerful spirit. She always did seem to take an... Interest, shall we say, in her people.<br>Hopefully, the lady is looking after me now, because I'm about to get into a -hell- of a lot of trouble!


	2. Chapter One: Enter The Darkling!

Disclaimer: Again, I do not own Champions. Nor do I own Mass Effect.

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><p>Note from the Shadows: A nice long chapter to make up for that wimpy prologue. I tried to get the conversation as well as I could, though, admittedly, it does make up most of this chapter...<p>

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><p>[Chapter One: Enter the Darkling!]<p>

I waved goodbye to my friends, looking at the shimmering portal in front of me. "It's been fun sharing this city with you, but I must go, I was never meant for stagnation. If you see Nebulis, tell him... Tell him I love him, and that I'm sorry. Be, guys."

I smiled at the odd bunch- a giant, well, at least, larger then average, kitten, a winged neko, a half blind, cybernetic angel, two succubi, a half fairy, and a cloaked mage. Strangely enough, the mage was the most normal person there.

"Whatever, tree girl. We'll tell everyone you ran off or something." Taylor grinned, he wings flapping a little. "Be safe, Mara..." the little angel mumbled. Molly and the other succubus just smiled at me. Sanya nodded. "Go on, Maranka. I can't hold this portal open forever, you know. I still think you should have waited."

I rolled my eyes at my long time friend, then, with a deep breath, stepped into the portal.

The first sensation I felt was falling, Then, hitting something hard. I heard an explosion right by my ear, and looked down to discover a hole in my leg. "Cana sheinda moto! OW! Mata sheinde, you _shot_ me!" I yelped, cursing in my native tongue and pulling up my skirt to examine the hole. Black blood leaked out. and I could see a bullet lodged inside. I heard the whir of machinery charging up, and a feminine voice said, "Talk. Who and what are you?"

I held my hands up in a gesture of peace. "Don't shoot! My names Maranka, I'm a Darkling, and I come in peace!" I was, at this point, reasonably worried. I mean, a weird person wearing full body armor had just _shot_ me! To my relief, she started to lower the gun. To my not-so-much-relief, I felt someone behind me grab me roughly by the arms and pull me to my feet. It felt kinda like they were wearing metal glove. Joy, more body armor.

"Come on, we can keep the kid between us and the assassin." I bristled at that comment. Sure, I was shorter then a human twelve year old, but my breasts declared my to be fully grown- physically, at least. And I'm not a goddamned meat shield! I considered teleporting away, but... Dear lady, that hurt! I couldn't focus for even five seconds, certainly not enough to teleport.

I stumbled as they pushed me on ahead, into the elevator. "Cana sheinde, you trying to kill me?" I growled. The gun was pointed at me once more, as the one behind me adjusted their grip to get a free hand and punched a button into the number pad on the wall. "Shut up, kid. We're taking you to Nassana now, okay? And you're gonna stay between her and the assassin, got it?" I glared, but nodded. I wanted nothing more then to find the idiot who led these two and give her a piece of my mind.

The elevator door opened, and I saw several things- A woman with short, blood red hair talking to a blue skinned woman with head tentacles. Behind the head-tentacle lady, there were several people in armor, and behind the red-head, there was a really pale guy with head tentacles and a weird body structure, plus a nearly naked, bald lady with a lot of tattoos.

The woman behind me ignored them and pushed me forward, behind miss 'head-tentacles'. "Would you let _go_ of me?" I growled, my bare feet slipping in my own blood. Once again, the gun was pointed at my head. "Fine, fine..." I mumbled, hearing something. I looked up, and saw in the vent a green, reptilian looking dude with an _awesome_ jacket. ...What? I admit it, I'm a sucker for jackets. He motioned for me to be silent, and I nodded very slightly as I turned my attention to the conversation in front of me.

Apparently, the red-head was called Shepard, and miss head-tentacle was called Nassana. Boring names. However... "Using children now, Nassana?" the one called Shepard asked. Alright, enough is enough!I'm not that goddamned short! Not caring how much trouble I'd be in, I started to growl.

"My breasts and marking declare me to be an adult, thank you very much!" The bald lady started laughing at me. Laughing! At me! That was just _insulting_! "Kitty's gotta bite, Shep!" I then turned and glared at Nassana. "I can see why someone would want you dead, if this is your idea of hospitality! I have a hole in my leg, I'm being used as a meet shield, and I've been called a kid three times now!" I grumbled, feeling light headed. My skin was more grey then black at this point, and when I looked at the pool of black blood on the ground, I saw why. "Whoa... That's, ah, a _lot_ of blood..." I mumbled, wondering silently why I was bleeding so much.

I heard a soft thump as someone dropped down behind me, then a crack and an explosion. I turned just in time to see the green dude form earlier grab Nassana and shoot her in the stomach. He laid her gently on the table, crossed her arms, and started to pray. The sun rose behind him, making him almost seem to glow. All was quiet for a moment, then the red-head interrupted everything by saying, "I was hoping to talk to you?"

She sounded American, I figured. The man replied, after a moment, in a deep, gravelly voice. "My apologies. Prayers for the wicked cannot be forsaken." "Is she really worth it?" I mumbled, I was surprised when he answered, "Not for her. For me."

...Huh. That was new. I've never seen an assassin pray for themselves before. "The measure of an individual is hard to discern by actions alone. Take you for instance. All this destruction, chaos." Huh? Somehow I get the feeling I missed out on something right before I jumped in that portal... "I was curious to see how far you'd go to find me. Well, here I am." Shepard was silent a moment, then asked, "How did you know I was coming at all?" The man began to pace, responding, "I didn't. Not until you marched in the front door and started shooting. Nassana had become paranoid. You saw the strength of her guard force. She believed one of her sisters would kill her." He stopped. "You... Were a valuable distraction."

Shepard sounded offended. "You used me! So you could kill her!" At this point, I had to cut in, "Just like they tried to use me to stop him from killing her?" Red-head ignored me, much to my annoyance. "I needed a diversion. You needed to speak with me. She needed to live. You've certainly fulfilled your end of the bargain. What would you like to discuss?"

I used the nearest wall to support myself, mumbling about being dizzy. The head-tentacle guy glanced at me, then looked back to the red-head.

"Someone's been abducting entire human colonies. We're going to stop them. We already know the culprits- a race called the collectors." The green guy was facing me now- or, more accurately, the window-wall- THING I was leaning against. He looked almost... Sad? "I've heard of them." He seemed to realize something, and spun around. "Attacking the collectors would mean passing through the Omega Four Relay. No ship has ever returned from doing so." ...Yeah, um... pointless exposition, much?

"They told me it was impossible to get to Illos, too." "A fair point. You've built a career on performing the impossible." The green guy turned around once more, sounding amused. He looked down. "This was to be my last job. I'm dying. Low survival odds don't concern me. The abduction of your colonists... Does."

Red-head looked concerned. "I hadn't heard that. Is there anything I can do?" "Giving me this opportunity is enough. The universe is a dark place. I'm trying to make it brighter before I die. Many innocents died today. I wasn't fast enough, and they suffered. I must atone for that." He looked towards me now, nodding slightly.

My turn to speak up. "Well. Sounds like you're in a lot of trouble, and I'd love to help you out, but I'd like more for my leg to be fixed. It's kinda... L-" The room spun, and the floor leaped up at me.

Then, blessed darkness.


	3. Chapter Two: The Ship Has Flown!

Disclaimer: This is the last time I am going to say this- I do not own Mass Effect or Champions. Maranka and her kind are -mine- though! No stealing them!

Note from the Shadows: I'm so sorry it's been so long since I updated! This chapter has given me a lot of trouble- it wanted to be in Shepard's PoV instead of Maranka's, which... Bugged me. However, it is finished! Kinda! I think!

A special thank you to Mwjen, who gave me this story's first ever review! There was one thing you were a little wrong about, by the way, but that's addressed in this chapter, so no worries!

[Chapter Two: The Ship Has Flown]

I heard people moving around me, and opened my eyes slowly, blinking up at the unfamiliar ceiling. Where am- Oh, right. I turned my head, watching red-head and an elderly woman speaking in hushed tones, glancing over at me. Oh, joy. Were they talking about me? It sure looked like they were. This was a scene I'd seen all to often- Every time I'd enter a space-level universe, inevitably, someone would try to run a scan on me, and discover that I wasn't human- or anything else they'd ever encountered.

I sat up, carefully. "From the looks of things, someone ran a scan on me, and discovered I wasn't human. Am I right?" They turned to face me fully, surprise evident in their eyes. "You're awake." The elderly woman sounded surprised. She had short grey hair, and I think she sounded slightly British? Eh, not important. "Yes, I am. Thank you, whoever fixed my leg. It was leaking."The elderly woman actually smiled a little at this, but red-head didn't look amused. "Well, if you're not human, what are you?"she asked, crossing her arms.

I rolled my eyes. "Always the first question they ask, too! Never "how are you?" or, "are you in any pain?"or even "what's your name?"No, it's always _what_ are you."I grumbled, crossing my own arms. "Answer the question, grey-gal." I blinked, looking at her, then grinned. "Grey gal? You came up with... Grey gal? Dammit, now I need a better nickname for you!" She grinned, then we both started laughing. After a moment, the elderly woman started laughing along with us. When we finally managed to stop laughing, and I had straightened back up- though for some reason the grey haired woman wouldn't let me _stand_ up, I answered red-head's question. "I'm a Darkling. A dimension hopper. Aka, I'm magic."

Red-head and grey-head rolled their eyes. "Magic isn't real." The grey-haired one claimed. This caused me to roll _my_ eyes. "Want proof?" I asked, not waited for an answer as I focused on the particular illusion I wanted. Grey magic enveloped me, and I felt myself shrinking. My cape fell away, unaffected by my magic. When the mist left, I had shrunk to age seven. "Believe me now?" I asked, wincing at the pitch of my voice. Red-head looked surprised, and maybe slightly... Afraid? ...Oops!

"I can't believe this, Shepard! These scans are saying that she's seven years old!" ...Double oops. "Ah, that's because at the moment, my body kinda... Is. It's magic, like I said." They still looked a bit disbelieving, but... "I can't argue with this proof. People don't turn into children. Not unless their in fairy tales. Next question- who and what are you?" Ah, my favorite question!

"Well, since you asked so nicely..." I started, dispelling the illusion. "My name's Maranka. I'm a Darkling, like I already said!" I ended cheerfully, grinning. "We hop across dimensions, and the last one I was in got boring, so I left. This one seems like more fun!" Red-head- what was her name again? Can't remember- blinked a couple times. "Just what we need... Another crazy." She muttered, before looking at me. "Did you mean what you said earlier, about helping out?" She asked. "But of course! I wouldn't offer otherwise." At her look, I sighed. "Look, I'm no stranger to combat. I've been running for my life for a bit over 100 years now. I've fought so many battles, it's not even funny. If your worried about my combat abilities, don't be." She looked impressed- and disbelieving. "You look like a child." She pointed out, to my dismay.

"By my cultures standards, I am a juvenile. I am one hundred-twenty-seven, which means I am an upper juvenile- I've passed the first seventy-five years, and am well through the last twenty five. By my personal standards, I am an adult. I'm actually tall, for females of my kind."The grey haired lady looked astounded. "What kind of environment would that be suited to I wonder..." I groaned. "Look, I'll be happy to spend hours discussing my people with you, later. For now, am I part of the crew or not?" Red-head shrugged. "Welcome to the crew, I guess, miss Maranka. I'm Commander Shepard, and this is Doctor Chakwas." I grinned. "Nice to meet y'all! So, where are you putting me? Somewhere warm and dark would be nice."

A blue orb blinked into existence, startling me. "What on earth?"I yelped. "I am EDI, the ships artificial intelligence. There is a room quite near the engine room that should suit your needs, miss Matea. Aw, damn it! "Aurgh! Everywhere I go, something always knows my last name! How annoying!" I grumbled politely. "That room would probably do, however, so thank you."

"Well, I suppose that solves that. You may as well head down there." Shepard commented. I smiled politely, starting to get up. The doctor looked worried, almost moving to make me lay down. "Don't worry, doctor. I won't cause myself to lose anymore blood, I promise. And I'll be careful." She sighed, but let me go.

I was halfway out the door, when I realized something, and turned around.

"Um... Anyone got a map?"


	4. Chapter Three: Hidyholes and Magic Capes

Disclaimer: I do not own Mass Effect or Champions. Mara is still mine.

Note from the Shadows: Well, now we get to see some Mara/Jack interacti- AUGH! Bad mental pairing! Bad mental pairing! *Drink brain bleach* Okay, now on to the story! I'm not sure I portrayed Jack right.. I apologize for the shortness, I will make up for it soon.

A warning right now, the next chapter will probably be a Champions Interlude. Which means we won't be seeing Mara, sorry.

[Chapter Three: Hidey-holes and Magic Capes]

I sat on the little cot in my new room, marveling at the piece of machinery. How ingenious! It was like a tablet, only holographic. Shepard had handed it to me, with a map installed. It had taken some getting used too, though... Certainly not like the map flowers at home. How are you supposed to find your way, when the map doesn't tell you what room you are in? Very odd!

Setting down the data-pad, I untied my cape and let it drop. I shook it out, books, clothes, and other essentials falling out. "Hm... Seems like everything's still he- ...I don't remember packing this..."I muttered, picking up a thin wooden rod. It was elegantly carved, with my colors inked in. As I turned it over, I felt a latch. I opened it, blinking. "Oh... How sweet. I'll have to visit that universe again in a bit."I muttered to myself, looking at the little note inside, then sticking it back in and closing it. I heard the door open, and turned my head.

In came the girl from before, the bald one. "Ah... Did you lose your shirt?"I asked, confused. She crossed her arms, looking annoyed. "What's a weakling like you doing on this ship?"she asked, crossing her arms. "I dunno, maybe it's because I offered to help and just might not be a weakling?"I offered, smirking.

"You fainted after one little bullet.""I'd lost a lot of blood. Won't happen again."I shrugged. "So, why'd you come in here?"I got to my feet, leaving my stuff on my cot. She shrugged. "Guess I wanted to see my new neighbor."she shrugged, sitting on a shelf. "Ah. Well, interesting to meet you. I'm Maranka, what's your name?"

For a moment, she didn't look like she was going to answer. "Jack. So, can you fight?"I grinned. "Can I fight? Hell yes I can. Here, move out of the way real quick?"I turned towards the pile of stuff on my bed, searching through it. "Aha! Here, toss this into the air and watch."I handed her my foam target that I used to practice aiming. "Ready? Now!"

As it went into the air, my hand shot out, purple light flying from my palm and hitting it in the center. It disintegrated as the blast hit it, though thankfully, none hit the ship. "Oops, a bit to much."Jack looked at me, somewhere between shocked and pissed. "What the fuck was that?"she demanded, coming towards me. Um... Oops! "Magic?"I offered weakly, preparing to teleport if she looked like she was going to attack me.

"Don't fuck with me. Magic's not real."she growled. I rolled my eyes. "Why is it that when people develop technology, they think magic's fake?"I muttered, focusing on the illusion from earlier. I held it for a few minutes, eyes still shut, then released the spell. "There. Convinced Shepard, and is the second piece of evidence you've seen."She still looked, well, pissed.

"You better not be fucking with me."she warned. "Girl, I'm to short, and to female, to be fucking with you."I replied. I actually felt a little proud of myself there- I didn't even blow anything up, and she was being annoying! Of course, I couldn't promise anything about what might happen when I found my can of gasoline... I patted my hair in the back, making sure my matches were still hidden away.

Jack grunted, getting to her feet and starting to walk off without even a fare well. How rude! "Be safe, miss Jack."I called, only slightly teasingly. Grams would be proud, I thought.


	5. Interlude: Stalking the Night

Disclaimer: I do not own Champions or Mass Effect.

Note from the Shadows: This chapter was... Incredibly hard for me to write, mainly because it required me to break half of the rules of grammar to put it in the right Pov. I nearly broke my 'updates weekly'rule. I finally got off my ass today and wrote this chapter, so yeah. You can probably expect to see more of Little Lana in the future. And I do apologize to those friends of mine who feel that Lana's been through enough in her backstory, I promise she'll get that happy ending she deserves so badly. And yes, this chapter is in Lana's PoV. It doesn't lookn like it because Lana thinks weirdly. Just as the other chapters are seeing through Mara's eyes, this one is seeing through Lana's.

I am really sorry about the short chapters lately, and I -promise- to make it up to you!

Thank you to MassEffectFan1337, you have made my day.

[Interlude: Stalking the Night]

Lana no like the rain. No-no. Kit no like rain either. Lana need find shelter, fast. Oh! Doorway! Lana run there!

Lana shaked her head to get rid of the water, now hiding in a doorway as rain pour down. Rain cold. At least, cold to Lana. Maybe not cold to others? ..Lana no no. Lana looked at the door, blinking when she saw that it stood open. Oh, maybe Lana go in? Yes, Lana go in!

Lana crept in through the doorway, Kit held close. Lana's white hair dangled in front of her eyes, so Lana pushed it out of her eyes. Eep, Lana hear someone coming! Lana darted behind a chair, holding her breath.

Angry man come in. Angry mandreminded Lana of Bad magic man, who took Lana away. Lana no like Angry man. Angry man shouting and throwing stuff, like Angry man lost something. What Angry man loose? ...Lana no know.

Hiding behind the chair, Lana took in Angry man's appearance. Taller then Lana when she actually stood, but still short. Maybe child? No, features look growed-up. Not important. Angry man's skin black like Era's, except not as dark, and had eyes like Kit. Angry man had hood, so Lana could no see more.

The throwing stopped, and Lana held Lana's breath. Was Angry man gone? Lana heard footsteps approaching, then stopped. A cold, cruel voice- like bad magic man's- said, "Boo."

Lana yelped, turning and running. Lana run down the flight of stairs, nearly hitting a bookshelf. Lana felt something grab her blanket and lift her up. "Let go Lana! Lana want down! Let go!"Lana yelled, kicking and struggling. Something wrapped around Lana's throat- a hand?- and spun Lana around to meet a pair of very angry, red cat eyes. "Little girl..."Bad-angry man growled, "Where is my wife?"

Lana shook Lana's head, whimpering. Who Bad-angry man's wife? Must be bad, bad-angry man very mad! "Lana no know! Put Lana down, no touch Lana, Lana no know!"Lana cried, kicking futilely.

"Pathetic."Bad-angry growled, his hand tightening around Lana's throat. Black spot covered Lana's seeing, Lana's lungs burning. Then, the hand holding Lana moved, impossibly fast, throwing Lana into the wall. Lana cried out in pain as Lana's head hit the wall, Kit dropping from Lana's grip as Lana went limp.

Lana felt Lana being lifted and slung over someones shoulder, and Lana's last seeing as the world went black was Kit stirring where he had fallen.


	6. Chapter Four: Assassins are great fun!

Disclaimer: As I have stated several times now, I do not own Champions or Mass Effect. I do, however, own Lana and Mara. They are mine. If you intend to use them, please get my permission first.

Note from the Shadows: I promised longer chapters, didn't I? No killing me! It's nearly twice as long as the last two!

[Chapter Four: Assassins are wonderful fun!]

Well, that could have gone a lot worse. She could, after all, have shot me. Or, really, done any number of unpleasant things to me. But she didn't, so yeah. Fun times all around. I turned my attention back to the stuff on my bed, blinking slightly. "Hm... Yes, I think I can put my books on -this- shelf, and my artifacts -here-, and maybe these can go -there-..." I muttered, arranging it in my room as I liked. In my opinion, it looked much better when I was done

With my stuff now put up, I was bored. "What to do next, what to do next..." I muttered, thinking. "Oh! Ah, EDI?" I asked the open air. A moment later, the blue thing popped up. "Yes?" she asked. "Where can I find the assassin, the one who was picked up with me?" I asked. I want to meet him, dang it! He's nifty! "Thane Krios is located in a room near life support. Signing you out." The blue glowy disappeared. I grabbed my cape, and wrapped it around my shoulders once more.

I followed my map out the door, headed to life support. I glared at the elevator. "No." I said out loud. "I am not riding in that abomination ever again. I'll just teleport." I muttered, slipping my map into my cape. Oh, magical capes, how I love you. I shut my eyes, trying to concentrate. "Full phase..." I muttered, then felt the subtle shift of dropping out of phase with the rest of the universe. It was.. Odd, to say the least. Everything was black and white, with the exception of living things, which glowed. Here, they glowed purple, for some reason. I went straight up, through the ceiling, until I reached the deck Thane Krios was on. I dropped back into phase, slightly dizzy.

"I hate full phase..." I muttered, looking around. Alright, I was right in front of the elevator... So go forward, take a right... Aha! Here! I looked at the metal door, then after a moment of consideration, I knocked. I waited, until the door opened with a hiss, and then the green guy from earlier was standing in front of me. He blinked a couple of times, and I waved cheerfully. "Heya! I'm Maranka, the girl who was leaking from the leg." I smiled. He blinked. Oops. I think I confused him. "So, ah, you're an assassin, right?" I asked. "I am." he responded.

I grinned slightly. Damn, if I didn't love that voice! "It's nice to meet you, now that my leg isn't leaking. Want to sit down and talk in private?" He nodded, leading the way into his room. I looked around it, noticing how well organized it was. Everything was laid out perfectly, which, I admit, kinda amazed me.

"Sooo... You're name's Thane Krios?" I asked as we sat down. He nodded. "Okay, this is going to sound stupid, but... What are you?" I asked. He blinked, startled by my question. Admittedly, I couldn't blame him. He was probably a member of a rather common race, and I was just a strange girl, asking what he was. "I am a drell." he finally answered. Thane looked me over for a moment, and with a note of hesitation, ashed, "What are... You?"

Well, I suppose it was only fair that I answer him. "I'm a darkling. I'm about..." I counted mentally, "One hundred, twenty-seven. I think." I shrugged. It's hard to remember, sometimes! He blinked, surprised. "You look... Young." he offered. I smiled slightly. "In my culture, I'm somewhere between a teenager and an adult, but it's easier to say I'm an adult. I can certainly fight as well as one."

He blinked. Then he asked, "Would you care to demonstrate?" Ah, shit... I think he wanted to fight me... Um... "That may not be the best idea... I can't exactly pull these blows... Erm.. EDI?" I asked the air. The blue thing pooped up. "Yes?" "Could you maybe set up some targets, um, somewhore? Maybe the cargo bay?" "Certainly." The blue thing disappeared.

"Alright, so let's head down there, and I'll show you on them. Because... I think Red-head would be mad if I accidentally killed someone." I smiled politely, getting to my feet. He followed, looking slightly confused. As we reached the elevator, I grimaced. "I'm not getting back on that abomination..." I muttered, thinking. Hm.. Maybe... Yes, that would work! Thane was looking at me oddly through this all. "Here, grab onto my arm, or my cape, which ever. I'm gonna show you something cool."

Thane grabbed my arm with a surprisingly good grip, and it was only now that I noticed his fused finger. Now was not the time, though. I shut my eyes, concentrating. I felt Thane inhale sharply as we shifted out of phase with the rest of the universe, though fortunately, his grip didn't falter. It would really suck if it had, truly. I dragged us in the general direction of 'down', stopping only when we reached the cargo bay. It was a bit larger then I had expected, and I saw a few holographic targets set up around it. "Alright... You'll want to stand back. _Far_ back." I warned him.

He nodded, releasing my arm. His pupils were slightly larger then normal, and I felt a pang of guilt for dragging him through phase with me. I took a deep breath, focusing. I felt a familiar tingle as the power in my blood, starting in my heart, worked it's way down to my finger tips. Black power gathered around my hands, and I waited as it grew, and grew. Then, I lashed out towards the nearest targets. Unlike the little bolt I'd shown Jack earlier, this was deadly, powerful magic. A straight beam of light shot out of my hand, breaking whenever I pulled one back to put the other forward. These targets were, I noticed, a bit stronger then the foam one I destroyed earlier. Still not as strong as real people, though, seeing as it took less then thirty seconds to take one down. The average living creature takes about, oh I don't know, maybe three or five minutes, at least.

When I finished, I felt a little dizzy, and hoped it didn't show. I turned around to look At Thane, who looked.. Well, I'm not sure how he looked. Somewhere between amazed, or shocked. "How did you do that?" He asked. I shrugged. "Magic?" I offered.

From somewhere nearby, I heard slow clapping. "Bravo, bravo." A new, female voice said. "You could have destroyed the ship with that little display, do you realize that?" I turned, growling, to look at the woman who entered. Fake. Definitely fake. Everything was just a bit to perfect about her to be real. "You do realize you don't know what the hell your talking about, right? Seriously. Magic missiles don't miss. And those were _weak _ones." Okay, so maybe I was being a little rude, but... Seriously?

I walked towards her. "Thane here asked to see my fighting style, so I showed him in a way that wouldn't harm anyone. Would you rather I did what I did to those targets to a living person?" She blinked, and opened her mouth to say something, but I cut her off. "I'm on this ship for Red-head, no one else. I don't care who you are. Now, if you'll be polite, perhaps we can start this conversation over?" I was... Not expecting the response I got. "I am Miranda Lawson, Shepard's second in command." Ah... Oops!

"That doesn't change anything." I said, a little uncertainly. "You still need to be polite." My voice was less sure now, and I glanced at Thane. I swear, if she tried to throw me off the ship... But she didn't. With a little hmph, she walked off.

"Uhm..." I looked back to Thane, shrugging. "Did you see what you wanted to see?" I asked. He nodded. "I have. Your fighting style is... Unusual. Do you know any physical combat?" I blinked. "Um... No." He looked startled, then offered, "Would you like me to teach you?" I shrugged. "Sure?"

Somehow, I got the feeling this wouldn't end well...


	7. Chapter 5: Oh, sure Of course magic can

Disclaimer: Champions and Mass Effect are not mine.

Note from the Shadows: Poor Mara, I'm so mean to her!

[Chapter Five: Oh, sure. Of _course_ magic can kill Geth! I think?]

Ow. Ow. And, once more, ow. I am never doing that again. Ever. Ow. I hurt in places I didn't even know I had! I glared at the Drell, feeling absolutely no guilt for blaming him for this. Nope, none at all. "I think I'll stick to my magic from now on, m'kay?" It was more then a statement the a question, but, I digress.

For the second time today, I was in the medical bay. And I hurt. A lot. Ow. Chakwas looked more amused then anything, and I could _swear_ that blasted lizard was laughing at me. Whatever, this is his fault. Yup, all his fault. Totally. Ow.

His little 'training' program had started out so well. The stances were the same as what I used in my magic, as were the punches. Rolling wasn't to hard, either. It was when he decided to show me throws that everything went to hell.

Either he threw my a bit to hard, or I didn't do what I was supposed to, because one moment I was upright waiting for him to throw me, and the next I was tumbling through the air to a box. And the moment after _that_, I was under the crate. I'm... Not quite sure how I managed that one, to tell the truth. I _think_ my foot must have caught the box as I was tumbling over it, causing it to tumble with me, which caused it to end up on top of me. I think. That's the story I was telling, at least. If anyone asked. Which I hoped no one would. Because that would suck. A lot.

I glared at Thane again. "Sure, sure, laugh it up. Not like I just got squashed by a box that's twice my size." I pouted. The door opened with a hiss, and Shepard blinked. Twice. "...Do I even want to know?" she asked, shaking her head. "Miss Matea here apparently had a fight with a box. And lost." Chakwas explained, and I saw the hint of a smile form around Shepard's mouth. "Don't you dare laugh at me. Krios here's bad enough." I warned. "It was a big box. And he threw me at it. Technically, it attacked me first." ...You know, I could have sworn I'd told her _not_ to laugh at me. I coulda sworn it. ...Grr. "I hope you're still fit for duty." Shepard stated, once she stopped laughing. I rolled my eyes. "Please. I've had worse injuries feeding my familiar. I'll be fine. Just point me at what I need to obliterate."

"We're going to a planet called Heastrom, to recruit a quarian." Interruption mode, activate! "Wait, what's a quarian?" I asked. Shepard blinked. Um... I'll just upload some information on the races of this galaxy to your omnitool while we travel. Speaking of which..." She handed me something. It was glowy, and orange. "Um... What exactly... Is this?" I asked. "Your new omnitool. I had a feeling you would probably need one." Oh, nifty. New technology to play with. "Alrighty, then. So, um... When do we get there?" "In a few hours. I suggest you read up on Quarians and Geth while we travel, it might help you figure out what your strategy is going to be."

I nodded. That was actually a pretty good idea. "Who all's coming with us?" I asked. "You, Thane, and Garrus." I blinked. "Ah... Who?" She sighed. "You'll meet him." With no further ceremony, she left. I blinked in confusion, before turning to Chakwas. "Am I good to go?" I asked. "Yes, but you should be more carefully when dealing with objects larger then yourself." "Whatever."

I spent the next few hours reading up on Geth and Quarians, and often found myself shaking my head. What a foolish, pointless war. The geth, from what I read, had not attacked the Quarians except for in self defense since they had left their homeworld. If my guess was right... Le sigh. "I wonder what would happen if the quarians had tried diplomacy at any point in their self imposed 'exile'..." I muttered to myself, slightly annoyed. "See, now I know what Grams was talking about, when she talked about bashing the heads of two feuding families together. Now wouldn't that be a picture?" I felt myself smirk as I said this, and looked up as the door hissed open. "Get suited up. We'll be there shortly." That was all Shepard said, before she left once more.

I blinked. Suited up? But I _liked_ my dress! It was comfy! "I suppose a little creativity is needed, here.." I muttered, taking my cape off and shifting through it. Where was it... Aha! I pulled out the thin blue bottle of liquid, downing it in one gulp. "Hello, Ironbark potion!" Now then... A few more spells, and I was good to go. I put my cape back on, took out my map, and headed to the shuttle. As usual, I ignored the elevators. Those things are _evil_.

I didn't see anyone on my way down, so I assumed they were still getting suited up. "Note to self, don't spar with Krios ever aga- "I stopped in my tracks. "I... Am going to assume you're Garrus?" I asked with a note of hesitation. Honestly, the closest thing I'd encountered to this guy was the Qular- or maybe ZIlla, sometimes, I'm not sure. He looked, well, kinda insectiod. And he was blue. And... Dammit! He was taller then me too!

"I am. You are...?" "Maranka. Call me a kid, and I shove shadows down your throat." I warned him. Okay, so I _probably_ wouldn't do it. Probably. Much. Shepard and Thane arrived before he could respond, however, so it was time to go. The ride was quite, and I caught the others staring at me a few times, but really, could you blame them?

The sun felt far to hot when we got out. "What did they do, shove a dragon in the sun?" I asked no one in particular. "Matea! Stay out of the sun! It'll drain your Shields!" Shepard ordered. "Pssh, I'll pass. _My _shields are magic." I responded, making my way down the ramp. The others followed, sticking to the shadows. We ran up on a dead guy with a hood, and there was a burst of static from something odd, and rectangular by our feet. _"This is Kal'Reegar, can anyone hear me?" _Shepard bent down to pick up the thing. "This is commander Shepard of the Normandy, we're here to help." _"How did you-? Nevermind, a helpful face is a good face at the moment."_ "What's your status?" _"Me and my squad are pinned down. The geth are trying to get into the bunker Tali'Zorah is in, but we're holding them off."_ "We're on our way." _"Careful, there's a dropship incoming to your location."_

I was silent through this exchange, and Shepard turned to me as she clicked off the weird thing. "Can your magics destroy robots?" she asked. "Um.. Of course. I think, at least." She sighed. "Well, we're about to find out." A weird, bug shaped ship flew over us, and I shuddered. That thing looked far to much like a Qular dropship for my comfort... As it landed, the strangest robots I had ever seen exited it. I saw Shepard and the others duck into cover, so I followed their example. I charged my magic while they fired, and then released with the same attack I used in the cargo bay earlier. Alright, so magic _does _work on these things. Good to know.

We fought our way down to a new area, and I saw two people withface masks and hoods standing by a pillar, firing at geth. There was a big red robot, a kind I hadn't seen yet, that aimed at them. As I saw what left it's weapon, my eyes widened in horror. The two were going to die. There was simply no other outcome. I shut my eyes as it hit the pillar, which crashed to the ground with a deafening boom. Maybe.. Maybe there was a chance those two were still alive? There was only one way to find out.

"Partial phase, sight shift." I muttered, feeling a subtle shift in my eyes. As I opened them I looked at the pillar. I shook my head sadly, dropping my sight back into phase. "Dead." I reported, feeling pained. It's never fun to see someone die... Especially not if they're on your side. "Come on, we need to get past that rubble." Shepard ordered. "Maybe we can find something in here that'll let us-" I held up my hand. "I can blow it up." I reminded her. "Just cover me, because I'll need to get close. _Really_ close."

Shepard nodded, and we fought our way to the rubble. "Void draw..." I muttered to myself, putting my arms to my side, my palms facing outwards. I shifted to get a firm footing, and shut my eyes. The sounds of battle faded into the background as my consciousness was sent traveling down the streams of magic in my blood to the glowing heart of it all. It pulsated with a dark glow, and I reached out to touch it with mental 'hands'. It fought me at first, as it always does, but I grabbed hold of it and held on. The power grew and grew as my mind traveled back up the paths of magic to myself, and I felt it building in my real hands. I opened my eyes, and focused the raw energy on the pillar.

The stone went up in a shower oh purple flames, the force of the explosion causing me to stumble backwards. Someone caught me from behind, and it was only then that I realized the fight was over. I coughed from the dust the explosion sent into the air, blinking until the spots cleared from my vision. "You okay?" Shepard asked, helping me back to my feet. I nodded. "I should be ready to fight again in a minute or two, let's keep moving. We still need to get your friend, right?" Shepard nodded.

We travelled down the now unblocked stone hallway, stopping in a room with metal panels all along the walls. Someone pushed a button, and they folded up on themselves. I blinked as we got a view of this giant, four legged... _Thing, _which was surrounded by many other robots. "Um... What _is_ that thing?" I asked, looking to Shepard. "Colossus. A pain in the ass. Come on, keep moving."

We went out the door, and... Oh. That's what a quarian looks like, up close and alive? Nifty. "Who the blazes are you?" he asked. His voice was oddly synthetic. "Commander Shepard, we're here to help." "And her? Why doesn't she have any armor on?" All eyes turned to look at me, and I blushed black. "Armor is ugly, and it's all to tall! Magic works _much_ better!" The quarian looked like he was going to object, but Shepard whispered something to him, and he shut up.

"Tali's holed up in that bunker over there, but the Geth keep trying to get in, and they've got a colossus. Standard procedure with armature class units is to kill it with bug bites, but this one's got a damn self repair protocol. I've taken a suit puncture." Okay, my turn to talk. "Shepard? I'd recommend taking a high route, and fighting your way to the big guy, then concentrating fire." "No good. That's how I lost my unit- The dam geth can keep shooting at you."

Shepard was quiet for a moment, looking from me, to the quarian. "Maranka. Can you keep them off us?" I shut my eyes, thinking. "I think so? Yes... I can. If you draw their fire at first, I can pop up behind them and get their attention." Kal'reegar cut in. "I can keep shooting ro-" I turned and glared at him Icily, as Shepard spoke. "You will not. Stand down, soldier." He was about to speak, but I didn't give him a chance. "It takes less then what is equivalently a kilobyte of my power to hold someone, you know." It wasn't a threat. Not really. Kal'reegar nodded, and we stood.

Getting them across the field to the colossus was easy. I just had to teleport them. The battle that followed, though... Was hell, plain and simple. The others were all focused on the colossus, while I had to fight off the swarms of Geth. I could feel my magic faltering more and more with every blow, and I could barely hear Shepard and the others. There was an explosion of light and sound behind me, and I flew forward. Here we go again...


	8. Interlude: Memories

Disclaimer: Champions and mass effect are not mine. Mara, however, is.

Note from the shadows: I'm sorry I missed my last update, but I have a good reason. On Sunday, I realized I'd forgotten, and I passed out while trying to write the chapter. Normally, I'd have finished it on Monday, but on Monday, I... I found my pet snake dead in her cage. I've been in a daze all week, and I apologize if my writings not up to scratch, but please, bare with me.

[Interlude: Memories]

_**-FLASH-**_

_She was seven years old, sitting with her grandmother as they discussed magic. Her hair was all frizzy from their last experiment, but her eyes, and her grandma's, were bright with laughter. "I wanna call them boom stones, Gramma!" She cried in her high pitched, youthful voice._

_**-FLASH-**_

Why was I remembering that... I hadn't thought about boom stones in years...

_**-FLASH-**_

_ She was ten years old, writing in her journal. 'Dear journal. Yesterday, I met my first Cathedel Edan at my aging day ceremony. She was nice. Her name's Kella. Me and Kella are going to be best friends, forever!'_

_**-FLASH-**_

Kella... Even more then a hundred years later, I could still remember how she looked, soft short, her dark fur stripped with purple. I'd given her her cape- a simple green cloth, nothing much to outsiders.

_**-FLASH-**_

_ She was fourteen, eyes wide in shock. "They're marrying you off?" she asked, voice quivering. Kella nodded, her normally bright eyes dull with tears that she dared not said. "This is my last day here, Mara..." Kella whispered. "They're sending me to Kasin tonight." A voice yelled in the distance, and Kella looked stricken. "I have to go, I'm so, so sorry, Mara." Kella turned, and sprinted out of the forest, into the mountains._

_**-FLASH-**_

Oh, Lady... Kella was so young... She didn't deserve to go like that. Hellfires, she didn't deserve to have to go at all. But especially not like that.

_**-FLASH-**_

_ She was fifteen, staring down into the casket in shock, her chest heaving with sobs as she stared down at the mangled body of what was once her best friend in the world. Deep gashes covered the body, and she could barely recognize it as her friend. Her tears splattered down into he casket, and she slowly raised her gaze to meet the hateful red eyes of the one who killed her._

_**-FLASH-**_

Kasin... That murderous _bastard_. Six women. Six, innocent women. For power. How could he do such a thing? How could anyone?

I felt myself drifting into the peaceful blackness, this time undisturbed by painful memories.


	9. Chapter Six: In the Med Bay Again

Diclaimer: I only own Mara.

Note from the shadows: I apologize for the delay in an update, this chapter has been fighting me. It's rather short, I promise the next one will be longer.

[Chapter Six: In the Med Bay Again]

Ow. Ow. Everything hurt. Ow. I rolled over onto my side, groaning in pain. I didn't open

my eyes as I hard footsteps approaching- why bother? "I see you're awake, how are you feeling?" I heard the kind voice of Doctor Chakwas say. I simply groaned in response, curling into a fetal position. The damned woman had the audacity to laugh at me- as if my pain was funny!

"I'll have you feeling better in a few minutes, hold still." I felt something cold and rather gel like being applied to my back, and I hissed through clenched teeth. "What... happened?" I asked, barely managing to raise my voice above a whisper. It irritated me, I liked my voice.

"The colossus exploded, and you wouldn't get out of the way like we told you too." Gee, Shep, thanks. I feel so appreciated. "Well, gee, I was... a _tiny_ bit... distracted trying to... keep those robots... from killing you... all, maybe I.. couldn't _hear_ you." Dammit! If I weren't so breathless, that would have been so much more effective! Stupid Shepard, stupid robots. She didn't say anything in response, and I still hurt to badly to open my eyes, so I didn't know if she did anything in response.

"I want you on bed rest for the next day or so, Matea. You hit the door." ...Oh. That explained why it wasn't just my back hurting. I groaned softly. "Can I at least... be in my... own bed?" I asked weakly. Silence, then I felt someone lifting me. "Sure. I'll bring you down there, you shouldn't be walking." Sure, sure, make me feel like an invalid...

I grumbled as Shepard brought me down to my cabin, leaving me on the bed. I may or may not have remembered to thank her, I hurt way to bloody much. After I heard the door hiss shut again, I sighed. "I miss Nebby..." I muttered to myself. "He let me... burn stuff..." I was thinking of him as I curled up on my side once more, drifting off to sleep again.


	10. Chapter Seven: Recovery

Disclaimer: Nope, still not Cryptic or Bioware.

Note from the Shadows: My updates may be slowing down soon, I'm under a lot of stress at the moment, but I swear, I'm -not- going to abandon this story. Also, reviews make me smile.

[Chapter Seven: Recovering]

I was sitting in my bed, reading one of the books from my personal library, when I heard the door open. I lifted my head, glancing around, yet I saw nothing. "Stealthy. Either an assassin or a thief," I muttered, relaxing. The air distorted for a moment, revealing a hooded woman. "Nice to meet you. I'm Kasumi Goto. You're Maranka, right?"

I smiled lightly, sitting up. "You've done your homework. What are you doing in here?" I tilted my head, setting the book to the side. "I wanted to meet you. What better time then when you couldn't poof away?" She came over and sat on the foot of my bed, evidently feeling not at all awkward in my space. She glanced over at the cover of my book.

"Magic's Price? I've never seen that one before. What's it about?" I blinked, tilting my head. "I didn't know anyone here read paper books." She smiled at me. "I love the feeling of paper, the smell of the pages..." Hm. Odd. I never thought anyone in a space faring universe would care about paper. "Well, it's the third book in a series called The Last Herald Mage. In this book, the main character- a pretty man named Vanyel- goes off the fight a force that would destroy all of Valdemar, alone. He dies in the end, but his homeland is saved."

I considered for a moment, then reached to the side to pick up my cape. Not for the first time, I was glad for the magical qualities Grandmother had woven into it. I plunged my hand into it, pulling out a book and tossing it to her. "That's the first book in the series, it's an interesting read." I smiled at her lightly. "It's been nice to meet you." She nodded, dissapearing again.

I waited until the door hissed open and shut again, then shut my eyes and laid back once more. For a while, I had blissful peace and quiet, but it didn't last. Within a few minutes, I heard my door open again, and opened an eye. Standing awkwardly in the doorway was someone wearing a purple suit and some sort of mask- a Quarian, I assumed. "I"m sorry, did I wake you?" she asked, her mask giving her voice a synthesized tone. "You did, but it's alright, I hadn't been asleep for very long anyway. What did you need?"

She fidgeted, looking awkward. "Shepard told me about how you kept the geth off them while they were coming to rescue me... I wanted to say thanks." Daw, she's sweet. I smiled brightly at her, scooting over and patting the side of my bed. "No need to thank me, miss... Tali'Zorah, was it? Here, sit for a bit." She came over and sat on the edge of the bed, fidgeting again. "I"m Maranka Matea, it's good to finally meet you."

"I'm Tali'Zorah nar Rayah. I'm curious, what are you?" I smiled lightly. "I'm a Darkling, we're not from this universe." For several hours, we continued talking back and forth, explaining our cultures to each other. Quarian culture sounded very fascinating, I can't imagine living in ships all the time! Though, it did seem a bit sad that they always have to wear those suits... Maybe another Darkling would pass through sometime, one who was better at healing magics, and help them. I hoped so, at least.

The next couple of days passed uneventfully, Tali and Kasumi came by to talk several times. It was rather nice, really. Normally, when I'd been injured in the past, I'd had to keep running. This time... Well, it was good to take a break, really.


	11. Chapter Eight: He's Not Dead?

Disclaimer: You've figured it out by now, right? I only own Maranka.

Note from the Shadows: I am -so sorry- about the lateness of this update, I have no excuse. So, to make up for it, I'm going to make this a really, really long chapter, I swear. My longest yet. And maybe you'll even learn some of Mara's past! I did cut it short before the mission was done, lest I go nuts.

[Chapter Eight: He's... Not dead?]

This place... Was amazing. I hadn't been so high up and realized it since I was back home... "You called this place Aliem, right?" I asked Shepard over my shoulder, leaning over the railing to look down. The view was simply breath taking. Shepard chuckled from behind me. "Illium, Matea. It's the gateway between the Traverse, and the rest of the galaxy."

"It's amazing," I said honestly, turning to look at her. "Why are we here again, though?" I asked, tilting my head a little. "My old colleague, Liara T'soni, contacted me, saying she needed help. I'm going to talk to her. You feel free to do as you wish." I nodded at her. "Be safe, Shepard."

I watched Shepard walk away quietly, then looking around. "So much to look at... What should I look at first..." I muttered. My gaze fell on some kiosks, and I approached them. "I suppose I could browse a little..." I said softly

I heard whispering around me as I browsed the kiosks, admiring the fish. I twitched in annoyance- surely they were used to seeing me by now! I turned around, prepared to berate them, and stopped, eyes widening in shock and horror.

Standing nearby, approaching me, was a young woman, a few feet shorter then myself. Her brown hair was held back in a formal bun, her catlike purple eyes looking up at me. Like myself, she had brown skin and markings- hers were curvier, showing that she was still in her childhood. She looked so much like me at that age... except, a bit less harried, though she did seem as worried as I was back then.

I approached her quickly, worried. "What are you doing here?" I whispered to her. She looked up at me, blinking those large purple eyes. "Are you Maranka?" she asked, disregarding my question. I stiffened, and crossed my arms. It wasn't that long ago, after all, that I had been fleeing my people. "Who wants to know?" She fidgeted a little. "Maranka's niece."

I blinked. Wait... A niece? Since when did I- oh, right. Grandmother sent me a letter about my niece a while back, I'd forgotten. I relaxed. "Keanead, does your husband know you're here?" I asked her, wrapping my arms around her. Geex... She had to be at least thirty-seven by now, yet this was the first time I got to meet her in person. She nodded, relaxing when my words confirmed my identity. "Yes, Dri Maranka. He and Padre helped me to get here." She looked around nervously. "Come on, we can't talk here, Dri Maranka. I've got a hotel room, it's safe to talk there."

My ears twitched with every word she said in Darkling. Lady bright, but it has been so long since I conversed in the mother tongue! "Alright, let's go." We walked towards the apartments, neither of us noticing the woman moving behind us.

Inside the room, Keanead sealed the door, the holographic touch pad turning red, and turned to me. "A drink, Dri Maranka?" she asked politely. I shook my head, standing by the wall. "You don't need to be so formal, Keanead. Why are you here?" She paused, and looked up at me again. "You'll want to sit down for this, Dri Maranka..." she said softly, motioning to the couch. Puzzled, I sat down smoothing my cape. "Kea?" She looked at me, as if memorizing me, and I fidgeted nervously. Whatever was wrong, I could already tell it wasn't going to be good. "Kasin Riados... Is alive."

...What. How... but... I thought... My eyes widened in shock, my hands shaking in my lap. "That's impossible. He- Kasin cannot be alive!" My voice shook as I looked at her in horror. She shook her head slowly. "He's alive. And looking for you again..." She trailed off, but even through my horror, I could tell there was something else. "Keanead... What has he done?" She hesitated, visibly wary of telling me, but after meeting my eyes, sighed. "He's still in Millinium, currently. He's taken a young girl by the name of Lana, we think, as a hostage. The only reason we know this, is her familiar is running around the city, trying to find her." My breath hitched, and I covered my mouth in horror. Dear, sweet little Lana... I'd only seen her a couple of times, but I had offered her clothes and a safe place to sleep a few times. That poor child... The hand in my lap clenched into a fist, a soft purple glow covering both hands. "You are certain he is still in Millinium?" I asked quietly. Keanead nodded slowely. "Dri Maranka, you need to leave this universe before he finds you. He's not even interested in bringing you home anymore- he just wants to kill you."

I shut my eyes, taking a deep breath. "Go home, Kea," I said softly. "Dri Manaka, you can't seriously be thinking of sta-" "Keanead Matea. Go home." I cut her off, opening my eyes. I noticed my currently glowing hands, sighed, and took a few deep breaths, the glow fading. Keanead looked me over, memorizing my features, with the look of someone who is afraid to see a loved one die. As if she would never see me again. My blood ran cold as I considered the possibilities of the future, but my mind was set.

Keanead nodded finally, turning away and unlocking the door. "Goodbye, Dri Maranka..." she said softly, watching me leave. I simply shook my head at her, watching the bright flash of green light as she disappeared. "Goodbye, Keanead..." I muttered, turning away- and stopping when I saw Jack standing in front of me, looking at me with her arms crossed. I blinked, then sighed softly.

"How much did you hear?" I asked quietly. "All of it. Who's this Kasin guy, and why are you so scared of him?" I bristled slightly, not wanting to talk about Kasin. MY fists clenched at the very thought of that... That -murderer-. "None of your business. And for the record, I'm not scared of him." I brushed past her, taking a few calming breaths. "Suit yourself. Are you going to run off, like the kid suggested?" I paused. "No. I promised to help you people, and I meant it. I'll this through to the end." She was behind me now, not having come forward. "I see. Are you going to tell Shepard?" I hesitated slightly. "I don't know. Maybe. If I think he's going to be able to find me here. Are we done with the game of twenty questions, now?" I could almost feel her smirking behind me. "Sure." I shut my eyes, walking away, back to the kiosks. Damn it, but I was determined to browse!

A few minutes later, I heard Shepard coming up behind me. "Matea. We're going to Liara's apartment in a few minutes to plan a rescue mission, we could use some back up. Mind coming with?" I turned around, shrugging. My mind was still racing, trying to fathom how it was possible that Kasin was alive. I saw Thane Krios standing beside her, but said nothing of it. "Great, let's go."

We arrived at this 'Liara' person's apartment a few minutes later, and were confused to see holographic police tape covering the door, and what were evidently cops going over the scene. "What's going on?" Shepard asked the one closest to the door. "This area is sealed off. Please step back, ma'am," the Asari answered. "Sealed off? Why?" Another Asari aprroached from behind the woman. "Someone tried to kill your friend, Commander Shepard. Thank you, officer, your people are dismissed."

Shepard crossed the line, and after a moments hesitation, me and Thane followed. "You can't do that!" The officer protested. The other woman looked back over her shoulder. "Already done." The rest of the officers cleared out, leaving us alone with the woman. "Tela Vasir, special tactics and recon," she said as way of greeting. Shepard looked at her, confused. "A spectre?" The woman just nodded. "So, I assume you were visiting your friend this evening, Commander." "Liara was following a lead on the Shadow Broker." The woman tilted her head, and approached us again. "The Shadow Broker? Dangerous enemy to have." Shepard shrugged. "What are the facts so far?" "About twenty five minutes ago, someone took a shot at T'soni. Note the bullet holes." She pointed over her shoulder with her thumb, and I followed it's direction to a few bullet holes in the glass. "She stuck around for almost four minutes before leaving the building. Whatever she was working on, it was important." The woman chuckled softly at the end. "If Liara's not here, where is she?" Shepard asked. "If I knew that, I wouldn't be sifting through her crap. There's no blood, no body, it looks like T'soni got away." Was that a hint of dissapointment I heard? "The sniper didn't plan on her kinetic barriers. Clever girl. Paranoid, but clever." She shook her head with a slight smirk. "Did the police find anything when they arrived?" "Just the mess and the bullet holes. I gave them a gold star for finding the bullet holes." I smirked slightly, hiding it behind my hand. "Liara was expecting me. She would have left a message here... Her office wasn't safe." "I'm not surprised. Illium is just Omega with fancy shoes." Omega? The mage girl who killed the Sisterhood? Why would she have fancy shoes? She hates shoes more then I do! "I haven't found anything useful for tracking her down yet. You knew T'soni better then I do. Where would she have hidden her backups?" Shepard shrugged. "Let me take a look around." Shepard walked around, examining stuff, and finally paused when he came to a picture of the Normandy beside Liara's bed. He picked it up, and the image changed with a soft ding. "The image changed when you touched it. It must be keyed to your ID." Vasir remarked, coming up behind him. "It's a prothean dig site. Liara did leave a message." I stood off near the wall, pretending to have a clue about what was going on, and still running the conversation with my niece over in my head. "There are a few prothean looking objects around the apartment. Let's see what we can find."

Shepard examined a few objects, stopping in front of what seemed to be a pile of rocks. He touched the screen, and a tray came out, a small disk with glowing red lines on it. "Vasir. I've got something here." Vasir stood and approached as Shepard picked it up. "Backup disk. Let's try it on her teminal."

A few minutes later, we stood in front of a screen, and a Salarian appeared on the screen. "It looks like she recorded a call." "What have you got for me, Sekat?" we heard a womans voice say- presumably, Liara. "It was tricky, but you paid for the best. I can narrow it down to a cluster, maybe even a system." "How soon can you have it?" "It shouldn't take long. Come to my office. Baria Frontiers, in the Dracon trade center." I noticed Vasir narrow her eyes, and look sideways. Hm... "Gotta say though, T'soni, you're making me nervouse. How big is the trouble that could come out of this?" The salarian- Sekat, I assmumed- crossed his arms. "Relax, Sekat. I'll see you in a few hours." The message cut off.

"This must be important. The Shadow Broker's people already tried to kill her once." Shepard sounded oddly worried. Just who was this Liara girl, anyway? "I know where the Dracon Trade center is. My car is outside." "Let's go." I fidgeted a little, and I think Krios must have noticed. "Commander. Matea and I can take the taxi, if you would prefer." I discreetly sent him a grateful glance as Shepard nodded.

When we were in the Taxi, the drell looked at me curiously. "Would you care to explain your nervous reaction, miss Matea?" he asked calmly. I tried not to fidget as I looked down. "I'm not good with cramped spaces," I answered after a minute. Krios looked at me again. "You were fine on the way over," he remarked.

I took a deep breath. "You and Shepard- I trust you two. You wouldn't let me suffocate. That woman? Every warning bell I've got is yelling 'no'. I don't know her, I have no reason to trust her, and to her I am an oddity." Like I was to Kasin, I thought, but didn't add. Best to stay quiet about that.

We arrived just in time to see an explosion on the third floor of the building. "Liara's in there!" Shepard shouted, as a chain of explosions went off. We heard screams, saw bodies go flying... Me and Thane ran to catch up to Shepard. Or, Thane did, as I just stood in horror. "This, is problematic." Thane muttered. I felt my hands making the Lady's Symbol, without realizing it. "Mata shiende moto..." I muttered.

"They just took out three floors to make sure she's dead!" Vasir cried. "I'll grab the sky-car and seal off the building from the top!" Vasir was already running back to the vehicle. "We'll start at the bottom and work out way up!" Shepard called back. "Just leave some for me!"

We worked our way through the building, the others bent other to avoid the smoke. Shepard and Vasir were speaking over the coms as we went, and for the last half of it, we were fighting our way through mercenaries. We got to the the door in time to hear a gun shot. When it opened, Vasir was there, oddly calm, and there was a body of a salarian nearby. "Dang. If I had been a few seconds sooner, I could have stopped them."

Shepard kneeled in front of the body. "Is this Sekat?" Shepard asked. "Must have been." Shepard looked around. "No sign of the data Liara mentioned. It'sa dead end." "Aw. Speaking of which, did you find your friends body?" We heard a click.

"You mean this body?" A young- well, she looked young- Asari stepped into view. She held her gun in front of her, approaching Vasir, while Shepard stood to the side. Huh, that was Liara? Shepard moved in the way. "Liara! This is Vasir. She's a spectre." Shepard looked stunned by Liara's next words. "This is the woman who tried to kill me." I was... Momentarily confused. I thought Asari didn't have genders! Then again, I guess everyone calls them female... "You've had a rough day, so I'll let that slide. Why don't you put that gun down?" Vasir was obviously attempting to remain cool and detached, but I could hear her words speed up slightly towards the end.

"I saw you. I doubled back after I left, I watched you break into my apartment." I muttered to Thane, "See? The warning bells never lie. She tried to suffocate us after all." His lips didn't even twitch, damn. "You didn't know where Liara went, because she hid the message. You needed me to find it for you." Shepard was scary when she was angry, how had I not noticed this before? She pulled her gun out, as did Thane, while I let my hands start glowing. Vasir shrugged. "Thanks for the help." "Once she had my location, she signalled the Shadow Brokers enforcers. They bombed the building to take me out. She found Sekat, took his data, and killed him. I'm betting she still has the disk on her."

"Good guess. Not that you'll ever see what's on it." Vasir held up a disk in one hand, hiding the other behind her back. "...You pureblood _bitch!_" She flung her hand forward, and with it came the window, shattering as it flew at us. Liara flung her own hand forward, a blue shield forming around us. Not bad, I thought, but it could use some work. I'd bet anything that you couldn't shoot through it. Vasir started running, and Shepard ran after her, tackling her. They both fell through the window. Liara jumped down moments later, while me and Thane looked over the edge. Liara was chasing Vasir, and Shepard was lying on the ground. Thane and I jumped down, moving to help Shepard.

We fought our way out of the building, coming in time to see Liara shooting at Vasir, who was hiding behind a vehicle. Vasir glanced at us, then brought up her omnitool, and punched something in. Her car.. Yeah, just gonna say car... Flew over to her. She ran off the edge, jumping in. "Damn it!" Liara exclaimed, putting her pistol away as we ran up. She was getting into her own car. "I'm fine, by the way. Thank's for asking." Shepard quipped as she sat down. Me and Thane piled in the backseat, me making myself smaller then usual to fit.

The car took off slowly, while I just sat still and wished I was anywhere but here.


	12. Chapter Nine: Isn't teleportating great?

Disclaimer: I only own Darklings.

Note from the Shadows: Yes! Another update! So soon! I know I promised to finish LotSB, but this seemed like a good spot to end the chapter, and it was already 1:30.

Review challenge! List all the times Mara has gone to the medbay, and why, and I'll dedicate the next chapter to you!

[Chapter Nine: Isn't teleportation wonderful?]

I hated that car ride. Absolutely despised it. The seat belt was to large for me to wear, and the rumors among the crew about Shepard's driving, I can say first hand, are not exaggerated. I was far to small to see what was going on, but I kept getting smashed against the walls, Krios, and at one point, while Liara was screaming something about a truck, the seat in front of me. After that incident, Krios reached out and grabbed my to prevent me from getting tossed around so much.

The car slammed hard against something, on my side, grinding against it, Whatever that something was, it slammed back. It was like an insane game of tennis, with me as the ball. I felt something go -away- from us with the last impact, then finally, they stopped slamming the car around.

When the car finally landed, I was the first one out, rubbing my sore arms and shooting Shepard a glare that she completely ignored. We were attacked almost as soon as we got out of the vehicle, but with my magic and the teams guns, they went down quickly. They tried to bring in reinforcemnets at one point. "Oh no you don't..." I muttered, flinging a hand out. Shadowy tendrils wrapped around the air-borne vehicles, then flung them sharply sideways, the mercenaries on top falling out to their deaths.

I caught Liara staring at me curiously, but I just shook my head and glared at my now-glowing hands. "No..." I mumbled. "I'm not going to go into a rage right now, stupid void, back off." I hoped no one heard me, as we continued on. We heard someone muttering something at one point, but, oddly enough, Shepard did not go looking for them, and we didn't see them, so we kept going, following a trail of blue blood.

We heard screams up ahead. "She's lost a lot of blood, we must be getting close.." Liara muttered. I winced, covering my sensitive ears. "So loud..." I muttered, as we saw the woman limping up ahead, through a crowd of patrons, with blood leaking. "Vasir! It's over!" Liara cried, pulling out her gun. My hand glowed black in preparation for a fight. Vasir turned around, grinning slowly, and limped towards a nearby woman."Hey! Hey you. Come here. What's your name?" She burst forward in a biotic blue, wrapping one arm around the woman's neck to hold her securely, the other one pointing her gun at us. The crowd shrieked, patrons fleeing.

"M-m-mariana.." the woman stuttered, and I could feel my eyes blaze in fury. "Mariana. You want to live, don't you? Tell those people you want to live." I watched Shepard' s face turn to a look of disgust."P-please.." Mariana pleaded. I edged closer to Shepard, whispering, "Shepard... If you can distract her long enough for me to get out of site, I can get the woman." Shepard nodded very slightly, a fraction of a twitch. "We'll get you out of here safely, Mariana." Shepard said loudly, as I started edging towards a nearby planter.

"Well. That's good to hear." Vasir pointed the gun at the woman's head, as I got my foot behind the planter. "All you had to do was walk away. Now it gets ugly." "Please... I have a son..." The woman was crying tow, tears flowing freely. There was my right leg, behind the planter. "A son? I hope he gets to see you again. I hear losing a parent is just horrific for children. Scars them for life." The woman turned her face away with a sob. "I"m going to end you, Vasir." Liara growled. Okay, ther was my left leg. Now to just crouch down out of site, slowly, slowly.

"It's okay Liara. We'll handle it. The usual way." There! Come on, come on, full phase... "You want Mariana's little boy to grow up without a mommy, Shepard? Thermal clips on the ground, now. Power cells too." There! Out of phase, out of mind, as they say. In less then five seconds, I was behind Vasir, hand positioned to wrap around her gun the moment I phased back in. "To bad I don't need those..." I crooned sweetly in Vasir's ear, yanking the gun away before she could react to my presence. Mariana yanked herself free with a cry, runnign towards the exit.

Vasir cried in rage, sending a biotic warp in my direction, but Liara intercepted it with one of her own. My hand flung itself out, dark tendrils of magic going to wrap around Vasir and hold her in place. "Ugh! Damn it! Damn it!" Vasir tried to break herself free from my hold, and I clenched my fist, making the tendrils constrict. Sweat beaded on my brow with the effort of keeping her restrained. Liara walked up, taking a small disk from the woman. "Sekat's personal datapad. This has what we need to find the shadow broker." The woman kept struggling. "You're dead! The Shadow Broker has been in power for decades, he's stronger then anything you've ever faced!" I grimaced, taking deep breaths and tightening the hold. "It that why you sold out the council?" Shepard asked. "You think I betrayed the council? Like Saren? Go to hell. The Broker has given me damn good info over the years, info that has saved lives and helped keep the Citadel safe. So if the Broker needs some people to disappear, I'll pay that price without hesitation." Shepard approached the woman slowly.

"Spectres don't blow up buildings filled with innocent people!" Shepard cried. "Sure we do. We get our hands dirty so the Council doesn't have to. The Councilors might complain about our methods to soothe their consciences, but they never look to closely. Besides, you're with Cerberus. You have any idea what your terrorist friends have done?" The woman gave up on struggling, to my relief. "I know who they are and what they've done. It doesn't matter." "I think it does. You want to judge me? Look in the mirror. Kidnapping kids for biotic death-camps! Hell, your own unit on Akuze!" Akuze.. That had been on one of the datapads Shepard had given me to read. I tightened the tendrils harshly. "Enough!" I cried. Noticing the woman's wound, I softened, pouring a small strain of healing magic in. "Shepard, this woman needs to be patched up before she bleeds to death, and then delivered to your authorities." I said calmly. Shepard nodded. Shepard nodded, then walked off, leaving Thane to help me get the captive back to the ship.


	13. Chapter Ten: Why do villains mention him

Disclaimer: I'm not Cryptic, people.

Note from the Shadows: A little late, sorry. I couldn't find the needed motivation to write this up until now. I -am- a bit sad that no one tried to answer the review challenge. For the record- No. Maranka's not going to end up with anyone on the crew. In all actuality, she already has a boyfriend. And a fiance, too, but he's supposedly dead, and is very evil, so who cares about him?

[Chapter Ten: Why must Villains_ always_ bring up my dead fiance?]

I don't know what Shepard and Liara talked about on the ship. I assume it had to do with when they worked together, but I wasn't about to ask. See? I have _some_ tact! Kinda. Sorta. Okay, I admit, I just didn't fancy getting shot at again.

I, however, ended up lying face down in the medbay and just... _whimpering_ a little. Dear Lady, but my head hurt! Never again. Never, never, never. Draining my magic reserves was not something fun, to be honest. I heard Chakwas approach from nearby. "I have some of Alenko's migraine medicine, I would like you to try it, miss Matea." A soft groan as I barely lifted my head to nod, and pain shot through it. With another whimper, I lowered my head.

Chakwas, however, was evidently a torturess, as she lifted my head again and forced me to swallow some medicine, followed by some water. "Now, then. I want you to stay put until we arrive at the Shadow Broker's base. _If_ you are feeling a bit better, and can move without whimpering in pain, I will _consider_ telling Shepard you are fit for duty on the ground team."

I made some sort of affirmative, curling onto my side as I waited for the pain to go away. All was quiet in the med bay, and eventually, I ended falling into a deep, peaceful slumber. When I woke, several hours later, I found that my head no longer hurt. Chakwas evidently noticed that I was awake, as she walked over quietly. "How are you feeling?" she asked. "Well, my head no longer feels like it's been being chewed on by a dragon, at least." I smiled faintly as Chakwas just looked a bit confused, before she chuckled quietly. "How you know what that feels like, I am not sure I want to know." I laughed softly in response. "Good answer. Am I allowed to come along with the ground team, then?"

"Well, it is ultimately up to Shepard, but I will let her know you are fit for duty now." Chakwas nodded, With a grateful smile, I started to stand- and realized that my cloak was missing. I blinked several times, looking around. "Uum... Do you know where my cloak is?" Chakwas looked up. "Oh! Yes, I believe Mister Krios has it, I asked him to make sure it didn't get lost while you were unconscious." Oh. That was... Actually, rather considerate of them. It's good to know that my 'cape of holding' wasn't lost. Heh, 'cape of holding'... I like that name.

I smiled softly to myself as I made my way to Krios's room, and knocked twice on his door. There was a pause, before the door opened with a soft whoosh. "Ah... Chakwas said you might know where my cloak was?" I asked, suddenly feeling a little awkward. Damn it, why did he have to be so bloody tall? It was totally not fair. With a nod, Krios stepped into his room, and moments later came out holding my cape. I smiled happily, taking it and pinning it back on. "Thank you!" I exclaimed, bouncing a little. He nodded again. "I believe Shepard was planning on having us on the ground team again."

I heard footsteps coming up behind me. "Gossiping, are we?" I turned to see Shepard grinning at us. "I see you are on your feet once more, miss Matea. What was that?" I fidgeted nervously under her gaze. "Erm... I used too much of my powers, to quickly, for too long, and drained my reserves..." I said awkwardly. Bleg, calling magic 'powers'. 'Powers' are what you would call my void rages... But, still. People here, I had noticed, tended to think I was crazy when I called it magic. "I see. Are you alright now?" I nodded quickly. "Alright, then. We'll be arriving on planet shortly, I want you to suit up. Matea, do you have anything that provides a bit more coverage? ...Shoes, maybe?"

I glanced at my bare feet with a grimace. "I might. Let me head to my room, see if I do." Shepard nodded, and I phased out, moments later resolidifying in my room. I pulled my cape off, laying it flat on my bed, and stuck my hand inside it. I searched for a moment, before pulling out a pair of green combat boots. With a grimace, I slipped them on, hating the feel of them on my feet, then reached back into the cape. This time, I pulled out a long sleeved jacket that looked to be made of silk, but on closer inspection, appeared to be woven of incredibly thin strands of iron and magic. Perfect. I slipped it on, before laying a shielding spell over myself and putting my cape back on. I returned to above deck, grimacing still at the feeling of shoes. "Better?" I asked. Shepard nodded.

We arrived on planet a little later, the four of us- Me, Shepard, Krios, and Liara- all crammed into the shuttle. I felt the familiar stomach churning lurch as the shuttle left the bay of the ship, moving towards something that I personally couldn't see. A few minutes later, there was another lurch as it tooked down. "Everyone out," Shepard ordered. "Stick together, follow my orders, and stay away from the edge. That means you too, Matea." I made a face as I got out. "I'm silly. Not insane. At least, not insane enough to test my luck in these winds," I commented as we made our way along the ship.

We thought our way across the ship, finally making our way to a locked down door. "Can you hack it?" Shepard asked, before I cleared my throat. "Does she _need_ to? I can get us all through that door." Shepard turned, looking at me. "We may need to get back through later, without you." Liara cleared her own throat. "Yes, but it will take a moment for the program to run! We'll need to make sure that the Broker's agents don't get a chance to deactivate it." "Do it." We moved to from a semi circle guarding the door as Liara started the program running, before joining us just in time for the first wave. I called up that familiar burst of magic, wrapping it around the ones closest to me and flinging them towards the edge and into others, as guns fired all around.

"It's good that they are attacking in waves like this. Do they not realize that we would be unable to hold them off if they attacked all at once?" I shot Liari a glare. "Do _not_ give our enemies tactical advice!" I cried, just as we finished off the last wave. My arms were aching from channeling magic for so long, and I was about to cut the link, when Shepard yelled, "Hostiles approaching!" I cursed softly as I looked at the foes approaching from all around, then glared at Liara. "Well, at least there will be less for later?" she said hopefully, to which I laughed as I started channeling magic, throwing some into others and knocking them from the edge of the ship. "You wish, lady."

We were all panting for breath when the last mercenary was ki- disposed of. "Everyone in one piece?" Shepard asked. "Afirmative." "I'm alright," I heard from Liara and Thane. "Yeah, I think so." I shook out my arms, grimacing at the tingling feeling of magic retracting. "Good. Let's go."

We encountered more foes on the inside, but in small groups that we dealt with quickly. I heard a gasp of horrified shock from Liara as we passed a large window, and paused, looking though it. "Mata sheinde yoto..." I muttered in shock, staring at the drell strapped to the chair. My hands shook a little as memories of my time at Miri's hands ran through my mind. I shut my eyes, inhaling deeply as I turned towards Shepard. "How do we help him?" "We get him out of that chair." Thane shook his head. "They have doubtlessly built in failsafes, commander. If we remove him from the chair, it is probable that he will be electrocuted."

I clenched my fists in rage. "Then we deactivate that cunteaga of a machine, and kill the piece of cunteaga sheinde who did this. Right?" I looked to Liara now, who nodded. Shepard, however, sent me a slightly intrigued look. "Awfully violent for you, Matea." I looked back at her, my violet eyes blazing in anger. "I know what it's like to feel helpless. No one deserves that fate." I saw Shepard nod slightly, before we turned to find the broker.

We walked into a room with some sort of... -Creature- in it. Shepard, Lira, and Thane all pointed their guns at him, so following their example, I let my magic flow to my wrists. "You've come to my lair. Reckless, even for you commander." I rolled my eyes a little, as Shepard responded, "That bombing on Illium wasn't exactly subtle." "Extreme, but necessary." "No it wasn't! Neither was caging Feron, for two years!" Liara was more then angry. Shen sounded like I did when I found out what Kasin had done to Riani. "Doctor T'soni. Your interference caused this. The drell betrayed me when he handed you Shepard's body. Feron is simply paying the price." Wait, Shepard's body? Shepard was a zombie? Okaaay, um... "Be smart. Let Feron walk out with us." "You won't be walking out at all." ...I think, for now, my commentary shall be purely mental. I fought down magic that longed to escape from my fingertips, as Liara looked at the broker/ "You're quite confident, for someone with nowhere left to hide." "You travel with fascinating companions, doctor. I am certain Sir Riados will be pleased to at last know where his fiance is." What- that little- "You leave that goddamn bastard out of this, you piece of shiende!" I yelled in rage, purple flaring around my fingertips. Damn it, damn it, damn it! How the hell did he know about Kasin? Unless... Oh, that can't be good. "It's pointless to challenge me. I know your every secret, while you fumble in the dark." Liara raised an eyebrow. "Is that right? You're a yarg. A pre-spaceflight species quarantined to their homeworld for massacring the Council's first contact teams. This base is older then your planets discovery. Which probably means you -killed- the original shadow broker sixty years ago, then took over. I'm guessing... You were taken from your world by a trophy hunter, who wanted a slave. Or a pet. How am I doing?" She smirked, as the beast grew angrier and angrier. He stood, impossibly tall, then smashed the desk in front of him and flung it at us,catching me under it. Black spots covered my vision, then nothing.

I woke groggily, Thane and Shepard lifting the desk from me, then helping me up. "Well, that was embarrassing..." I muttered. Shepard just shook her head, as we went back to the room with Feron. I didn't understand the tech stuff, but I knew what _I_ was supposed to do. The lights flashed for a moment, and I grabbed Feron's arm. I phased out with him just as the lights flashed back on, reappearing in the room with Liara, Shepard and Thane, who caught him before he fell over. Voices came from a set of monitors, and Liara moved closer, eyes watching them. She looked amazed, fascinated... wanting.

I knew what she was about to do moments before she did it, as she walked forward, bringing up and tapping a panel. "This is the Shadow Broker. The situation is under control. We experienced some power fluctuations while upgrading hardware, and it turned off the network. However, we are now back online. Resume standard procedures. I want a status report on all operations asap. Shadow Broker, out." Shepard and Feron looked at Liara in shock, while I slowly nodded in understanding. "Goddess of oceans... It's you... You... How?" Feron stumbled forward. "Well... Everyone who has ever seen him in person is dead, so..." "You... Are the new shadow broker." Was that awe, I heard, or lust? Or both? Interesting. "Is taking over as the shadow broker really the best idea?" Shepard asked. "It was either that or lose his intell. His contacts, his trading sources. Those resources will really help us. With the Shadow Brokers intell, I can... I can.." "I'll... Go check the Power Systems. Me and Thane nodded slightly, going with him.

"You holding up okay?" I asked Feron softly. He nodded. "I never thought she would rescue me... Or that any of this would happen." I chuckled a little, listening to him. "Yeah, stuff tends to happen like that. Come on, let's go check those power systems, give them time to talk."


	14. Chapter Eleven: Telling the Past

Disclaimer: I do not own Champions Online or Mass Effect, I'm just a writer.

Note from the Shadows: What, already, another update? Yes! And Over 1000 words! Aren't I awesome? Heeeey... Put that tomato away... Right. Well, you'll notice that I am, once again, mean to Maranka. But I'm nice to her in the end! Yes, my Shepard is indeed the type of person who would hug a crew member. Also- If you play Champions, I'd be willing to give your character a guest appearance if you asked.

**[Chapter Eleven: Telling the Past]**

To my surprise, and relief, Shepard didn't start asking questions until we were all on the ship. I was definitely _not_ looking forward to explaining who Kasin was, or why bringing him up had pi- Ah, made me so mad. Unfortunately, this short reprieve wasn't to last.

Shepard sent me off to the medbay the moment we got on ship. I'm not sure why, I felt fi- Oh, right. Desk. Head. Right... Um... Yeah, going to Chakwas sounded like a good idea. Don't want a concussion, you know? ...No, you probably don't, now that I think about it. Oh well.

I headed off to Chakwas, looking slightly abashed. Geez, I felt like a moron. I wonder if I could blame the desk? ...Yes, it's the desk's fault. All the desk's fault. Chakwas looked up when I came in. "Again, miss Matea?" she asked, one eyebrow raised. I fidgeted a little, looking down at the floor in embarrassment. "It's not my fault, people keep throwing stuff at me! Or me at stuff!" I pouted a little. "Mm-hm, yes, yes, I believe you. What was it this time, miss Matea?" I fidgeted again. "The Shadow Broker threw a desk at me..." I admitted, cheeks turning a light purple.

Chakwas raised an eyebrow, then directed me to sit. I fidgeted nervously, sitting on the hospital bed as she brought up that orange thing, what was it called- Oh, right. Omnitool. What a strange word. She ran it's scanner up and down me, all around my head, muttering slightly to herself as she mentally took notes- I think she did, at least. Once she seemed satisfied that she had scanned every inch of my head, she deactivated the scanner, lifting her arm to look at the screen of the thing. "Well, you don't seem to have a concussion. A few mild bruises, but no concussion," she said finally. I relaxed visibly. "Good. It's hard to teleport with a concussion, there's always the worry you'll come out early," I joked lightly. A thought came to my head. "Hey... How long have I been on ship, exactly?" I asked. "A bit over a week, why?"

I blinked, mentally counting days, eyebrows furrowing. My eyes widened as I realized something. Oh. _Oh._ "I really need to keep better track of time..." I muttered to myself, causing Chakwas to raise an eyebrow. "Something amiss, Matea?" I shook my head. "Just remembered something, that's all. Am I good to go?" Chakwas nodded, still raising that eyebrow. I left quickly, teleporting down to my room. What? Elevators are evil!

I walked around my room for a moment, laying my hand on shelves and familiar objects as I shut my eyes, pointed ears drooping. My birthday... How could I have forgotten my birthday? Well... Alright, so I didn't really celebrate it, but still... It would have been nice to spend it with Nebulis, and Zilla... I shook my head slightly. It wasn't for another two weeks, maybe all this would be done by then and I could go back to Millennium.

I looked up when I heard a tap on my door. "Come in?" I asked, as the door whooshed open. In stepped Shepard, arms crossed. "Care to explain what that was about, when the Shadow Broker was talking about that Riados guy?" Um... Oops. I knew I shouldn't have blown up like that! ...Too late now. "...Alright, but it's not exactly pleasant," I warned. "I can deal with unpleasant. Talk."

I shut my eyes, taking a deep breath. "When I was twenty-five, my parents arranged a marriage between my and a man from one of the other four houses, Kasin Riados. He's a murderer, a blood mage. He's killed his past six wives- including a close friend of mine, who wasn't a darkling at all. I fled the day of the wedding, and he's been chasing after me ever since, for the past... Soon to be one hundred and three years. He is... Evil. Purely evil. He's been killed- or seemingly killed- three times so far. The few times he's gotten his hands on me..." I trailed off, one hand going to my gloved arm. Beneath the long gloves, I knew, were a multitude of scars that that thing had left. After a moment's hesitation, I pulled down the glove, showing scars criss-crossing my arm, some outlining my markings. "He did this to me. There are more scars, but I'd rather not show you them. It's even worse when he gets his hands on my friends... He tortures them, to get information about my location. Keeps them as hostages, to draw me out of hiding. He wants me dead, and won't stop at anything to get at me." I trailed off, looking at the ground with a frown. I hated, hated, talking about that.. _man._

Even though I wasn't looking at her, I knew Shepard was giving me that all too familiar look of pity. Everyone did, when they found out. As I looked at her to confirm it, I looked away in disgust. "_Don't._ Don't pity me. I don't want to be pitied. I don't need to be pitied." I pulled the glove back on, relaxing once I was no longer having to keep as tight a rein on my magic. I was... Angry. Yes, angry, that was the right word. Angry that Kasin had caused such a major upheaval in my life, angry that Shepard was asking questions, angry at being so... so... Helpless. Yes, helpless. That was the right word. "And the Shadow Broker, speaking about him, means that he's here, and I can't run away this time, not if I want to keep my promise. I'm going to have to fight him this time, and that scares me half to death, so I'm kind of on edge at the moment, alright?" My hands clenched into fists as I shut my eyes, waiting. I was a risk. I knew I was. She wouldn't want to let me stay and help, she wouldn't want to help me, she'd send me away and I'd be on my own again. It shocked me to realize just how much I loved this ship, and the few people I had met. Hell, I even kinda liked Jack!

I was shocked to feel arms gently wrap around me, opening my eyes as I realized Shepard was hugging me. Why was she hugging me? She shouldn't be. "You really are a kid, huh? One who's been very frightened, for a very long time..." she said softly. I was about to protest, when I realized that she might be partially right. "No wonder you got so angry about him.. You didn't think I'd just turn you away, did you?" She frowned when I didn't answer. "Well, I won't. I'll help you, just like I'd help any other member of my crew. Alright?" I nodded slightly, shocked. She released me. "You're one of us, Maranka. Get used to it." An 'us'.. It was the first time I had been part of an 'us'. I smiled slightly. "Thanks, Shepard."

Shepard left after that, and I sat once more on the edge of my bed. After a moment, I got back up, locking the door with a spell. I pulled off my gloves and cloak, then my dress, and looked at myself. Scars criss-crossed my grey skin, some going under my under-clothes. I had runes permanently carved on to the flesh of my stomach, a painful glaring reminder of the time I had been stupid enough to confront him. I traced a finger along the scar, eyes dimming as the memory flashed before my.

_It's dark, lit only by dim, flickering torches. Her hands and legs are chained to the wall, preventing escape. She's hyperventilating, eyes darting around rapidly for any hint of an escape a rescue, as he comes closer and closer with that wicked, jagged knife. "I am going to make you _beg_ for death, dearest," he croons wickedly, his hand, with long, sharp nails, cupping her cheek. "You will regret ever running from me when I am through with you..." Her screams echoed the castle as the knife descended, carving._

I gasped softly as I snapped out of the memory, sinking to the floor and hugging my knees to my chest. More then a year later, and I could still smell the acrid smoke, feel the pain... I hated knives after that. Couldn't go near one without freezing up. I'd had to ask a friend to get rid of my dagger, because I couldn't go near it to do it myself.

WIth memories, and fear, as my only companions, I hid my head between my knees and wept myself to sleep, letting dark oblivion wash over me.


	15. Interlude: Fear

Disclaimer: I don't own Champions Online or Mass Effect.

Note from the Shadows: Sorry about the wait, guys. Been rather... Mentally screwd up, as of late, so we've been trying to fix that. BUT! I am back on track now, so... Update! Wheeee! Erm... Lana lovers, please don't murder me for this chapter...

**[Interlude: Fear]**

The man paced the length of the small, dingy apartment in the lower levels of Omega, red eyes glowing in rage. He had a mask covering the totality of his face, and the hood of his long robes was up. His clawed hands clenched and unclenched into fists, his bare feet making not a sound as he paced.

He spared a glance over to the girl in the corner. Small, and heavily scarred, her white hair fell in front of purple eyes that watched him in terror and pain. A bruise was forming on her face, where he had slapped her to shut her up. She had been remarkable quiet since, not even a sniffle. Well, that wouldn't do. Maranka would be far more likely to do what he wanted if the child was at the very least crying.

The man turned, and knelt in front of the child, grinning evilly. "We're going to have some _fun_, you and I. Perhaps you'll even be alive at the end of it." The child stared up at him through wide purple eyes, shaking. The man ran his hand through the child's hair- then grabbed a chunk and yanked, forcing her to her feet. The girl cried out softly, bound hands going up towards her hair.

His hand shot out, hitting her cheek hard, causing her to cry out again, whimpering. "Shut up!" he yelled. Purple eyes squeezed shut as the small girl shook, cringing. "That's better.." he said with a false smile, stroking her cheek with the back of his hand. The girl whimpered again as he turned his hand over, slowly raking his claws down her cheek. "St-stop.." a choked, small voice pleaded. He slapped her again, claws turned inwards. She whimpered as they pierced her cheek. "I didn't give you permission to speak, girl..." he said quietly, eyes glinting in a deadly manner. "I'm going to have to punish you for that..."

The small girl whimpered piteously, tears streaming down her pale cheeks, over his hand. He grinned sadistically as he dug his claws into her cheeks. "I'm thinking, perhaps... Fire." The terrified look on her face was well worth it, he thought.


	16. Chapter Twelve: Meet Ankavo!

Disclaimer: Mass Effect and Champions aren't mine.

Note from the Shadows: Alright, sorry I waited so long. I've been cleaning, and toying around with other ideas. But, hey! I'm back! *Happy face* I do have a question for you readers, though. Should I go ahead and write Mara's loyalty mission in one of the next few chapters?should I wait, until I've done everyone else's missions?

Please review, and leave scritches for Ankavo, he'll adore you forever! And yes, I know that name breaks the Darkling name syntax, but me and Mara don't care, It sounds better then Voanka, don't you agree? I will dedicate the next chapter to anyone who reviews and mentions the connection between the two names.

**[Chapter Twelve: Meet Ankavo!]**

I'm not sure how long I stayed in that little room, even after I woke up. Eventually, I put my gloves, dress, and cape back on, but I didn't leave. I ended up sitting on my bed, magic flowing from my fingertips as I attempted to summon my pet void horror. ...What's that look for? He's cute!

I was trained when I finally managed it, and leaned against the wall, shaking my hands in an attempt to remove the clinging shadows of void magics. The little horror came up to me, head butting my hand, like a cat, and I giggled as he cried pitifully, "Mreeen..." "Hello, Ankavo." I obediently ran my hand through the purple flames that he was made of, relaxing.

A knock at the door startled me into sitting up. Ankavo shrunk until he was about the size of a doll, flying up beside me. "Come in?" The door opened with a soft whoosh, and in came Kasumi. She sat on my bed next to me with a cheeky grin. "A desk, Maranka? Really, there's no class at all to that." I lightly pushed her shoulder, sticking out my tongue. "Well, it's not like he gave me much choice in the matter, He didn't ask _me_ what I wanted thrown at me."

Kasumi noticed Ankavo, and I think the only proper description of her response would be 'squee'. I covered my ears with a wince as Ankavo looked at her, hovering. "Maranka, what _is_ it?" She asked with a grin, causing me to roll my eyes. "His name is Ankavo, he's a void horror. I'll warn you, he's _very_ affectionate if he thinks you'll pet him." Kasumi held out two fingers, and Ankavo flew forward, once again headbutting them like a cat. "Mreen!" Obediently, she curled her fingers into his flames, petting him, and looked at me. "Why didn't you summon him before now? Couldn't he have helped?" I nodded slightly. "Yes, I could have, but there are two reasons that I didn't. First, I wasn't sure I _could_ summon him here, I'm very far from my home universe. And second, it's very draining for me to summon him. I probably shouldn't have now, but I'm fairly certain that Shepard probably won't let me go on the next mission, so I'll have time to rest. He _is_ cute though, isn't he?" I grinned, reaching over to scratch the back of Ankavo's neck. Kasumi nodded with a laugh. "Yes, very cute. I guess you're okay, then." I grinned. "No concussions, and no broken bones. I still don't have to use the elevator."

Kasumi laughed. After we talked for a while, she left. I tried to read for a bit, but ended up getting bored and heading up to the mess hall. Ankavo had shrunk to the size of a housecat, and was floating along, not fighting the leash of shadowy magic that I had made for him. Not that he normally does, Ankavo is a _very_ well behaved little void horror, much more polite then the others I had summoned before. I do try to avoid summoning those, they tend to cause problems for me.

I noticed the strange looks people gave me, but pointedly ignored them as I walked over to Rupert. "Hello!" I said cheerfully. He looked back at me. "Well, hello, miss Matea. Are you here for dinner?" I noticed only now the pot on the stove behind him. "That sounds lovely, yes please." Ankavo butted my leg in a demand for petting. "Mreeeen..." I glanced down at the little void horror, affectionately scratching his head for a moment. "If you've got a bit of extra meat for Ankavo here, I'd appreciate it." Rupert glanced at the creature, blinking. "Your pet?" I laughed, shaking my head. "No, a summon. He's supposed to be for fighting, but if I leave him in the void for too long, he sulks and won't fight next time I need him. I'd have left him in my room, but he'd probably move all my stuff." I nodded, trying very hard to keep a straight face. Rupert didn't say anything else, just gave me a bowl of stew and a bit of sausage for Ankavo. With a nod, I walked over to in front of the elevator, and paused.

As I've mentioned, I really don't like elevators. But, I wasn't certain I could teleport me and Ankavo down with both hands full, so with a sigh, I turned to my summon. "Would you mind pressing the call button? My hands are full." Ankavo flew to press the button, with far too much cheer- probably at the prospect of getting meat. Once the elevator arrived, I shuddered, stepping in. I nodded at Ankavo again, signalling for him to press the button for us to go down to our floor.

Down we went, heading to my room. I ignored the strange looks I got, and once the door was shut, I set the bowl on one of the shelves. Picking up the sausage, I knelt by Ankavo, offering it to him. "Mreeen!" he cried happily, taking it in obth hands and nibbling on it. I smiled, then picked up my soup, sitting on the bed to eat it. I sent out tendrils of magic once I finished eating, and the bowl disappeared. If my spell worked right, it would be in the sink right now. If not... Well, I hope it worked right.

Ankavo nuzzled my leg. "Mreeen?" He sounded so hopeful that I couldn't help giggling. He was holding his leash in one hand, and I knew what he wanted. With a soft laugh, I took the offered leash. "Come on, you can meet Tali." For once, I was exceedingly glad that my room was on the same floor as Tali's. It wasn't a very long walk, really, but I had forgotten- AKA I didn't know- that Ken and Gabby were there, as well. So when I said hello, they looked over- and were promptly freaked out my Ankavo. "What _is_ that thing?" Gabby cried, staring. Anakavo hid behind my legs, holding what was left from his sausage. I looked from him, to her, with a slightly bemused grin. "This is Ankavo, he's my summon. The official term is 'void horror'. He's very sweet." Ankavo decided to prove this, flying over to Tali and butting against her leg. "Mreeen?" Tali looked utterly confused, causing me to laugh. "He wants you to pet him. Don't worry. he doesn't burn, for that matter." I added that last bit as an afterthought, noticing her wary glance at the purple flames he was made of.

Tali obediently pet him after he once again cried, "Mreeen!". "He is sweet," she commented as he nuzzled happily against her hand. "Indeed. He's supposed to be a combat summon, but he's just so sweet that I let him out for more then just combat." Tali nodded. "How do you unsummon him, though?" I blinked. "Well... There are a few ways. If he takes too much damage, he'll retreat to the void realm to recover. If I am killed, he'll either choose a new master, or retreat to the void realm. As well, I can open my cape, and he can use it as a gateway to the void realm. Or, I can repeat the spell to summon him, only backwards." I nodded, satisfied with my own explaination.

A soft impact with my leg made me look down, to see Ankavo looking up at me, arms around my leg. "Mreen!" he demanded, causing me to laugh softly. Tali looked at me, and I just smiled. "I'd love to continue this conversation, but it looks like we'll have to do so later. I believe that was Ankavo informing me that he wants to return to my room." Talli nodded. "Bye, Maranka." "Bye Tali!"

I left in high spirits, my void horror in my arms.


	17. Chapter Thirteen: A kid inneed, & a clue

Disclaimer: I do not own anything.

Note from the Shadows: I am so sorry, guys! I meant to get this up earlier, I just... Haven't been feeling up to being creative, lately... Since no one answered my question about Mara's loyalty mission, I'm just going to put it somewhere in the middle, 'kay?

**[Chapter 13: A Child In Need, and a Clue]**

As I had suspected, Shepard didn't allow me to come along on the next mission. Actually, this time, she and Thane went alone. Curious... No matter, that's none of my business. Apparently, the guy's son was in danger, so Shepard was going to lend a hand. Meanwhile, the rest of us got some shore leave on the Citadel. I made Ankavo stay on the ship, to his dismay. He followed me all the way to the airlock but when I still wouldn't let him come with me, went off to sulk. Sighing, I stepped out onto the citadel, looking around.

...To describe it in one word, it was busy. Kinda scary, but, meh. I'd seen worse before. I wandered around, fascinated by all of the sights. There was just so... Much. It was huge. Though, the ads -were- annoying... I forced myself to ignore them, for now. Getting mad solves nothing.

I paid little attention to my surroundings- to my detriment, as it turned out. I yelped as something landed on my head, reaching up to grab it. I blinked a little, looking at the letter in my hands. A wave of dread washed over me as I stared at it. _That_ _was a spell. Whoever sent this knows magic, and knows -my- spell._ Ice cold fear ran through my veins. Only one person in this universe could know that spell... Hands shaking, I opened the letter, pulling out the contents. Two pieces of paper, one glossy, the other carefully folded.

I looked at the glossy one first, and my eyes widened. "Mata shiende yoto..." I muttered. It was a photograph of a small girl, no older then nine. White hair was stained with blood, and one purple eye was swollen shut, the other tear filled. Burns- new ones- covered all visible skin. Where there weren't bruises or burns, there were deep cuts forming patterns. _Not patterns. Runes._ My mind chimed in helpfully. I swallowed hard, feeling sick to my stomach. "Mata shiende yoto." I repeated, trying to resist the urge to vomit. I unfolded the paper next, dreading what I might find written inside.

_Dearest Maranka,_

_I hope this letter finds you in good health. It would be such a shame if someone else dismembered you before I got a chance to do so myself, after all. But fret not, my dear, I shall not be too dreadfully bored while forced to be separate from your presence. As you can see, I found myself a new pet to occupy myself with while waiting for you to return. However, my dear, she is nowhere near as resilient as you. It would be a shame were she to perish, after all. That needn't occur, of course, if you would but return to me willingly. If you will not, of course, I am afraid my new pet will be forced to suffer for a while longer. You can surely see, I hope, why this would be an unfortunate turn of events, my love?_

_I am not cruel, of course. Were you to return to me, I would return the girl to where I found her, as I am quite certain the poor thing has no clue how to return on her own. I am most certain that the child's parents are worried sick about her. Could you truly live with the guilt, if all that was returned to them was her mangled body, simply because you would not return to your betrothed?_

_I will be generous, dear, and not only forgive you the transgression of being with and dating another man, but allow you to keep him, as well- provided, of course, that you bear me sons._

_Your Bethrothed, _

_ Kasin Riados_

...Well. Fuck. I suppose it was naive of me to hope he wouldn't involve innocents in this, as he always has before, but he had, I guess. All I could do now was try to help the poor girl who had gotten caught up in my troubles, and hope she could forgive me when this was all over. Oh, that, and throw up. Throwing up sounded _really_ good right about now, actually.

I sealed the letter, hands shaking, and tucked it away in my coat, going off in search of a trash can. Moments later, I was bent over a trashcan, puking my guts out in an attempt to remove the horror of what I had just read, to no avail. The words were burned into my mind, twisting, turning, repeating.

The meaning of his words was painfully clear to me- come to me, or I torture the girl to death. Damnit, but the bastard knew me far too well for his own good. Maybe... Maybe this time, I'd be able to stop him. No, not just stop him. Kill him. For good, this time. He's died so many times now... This time, he'll die for good. Even if I have to follow his soul to the afterlife to make sure of it.


	18. Chapter Fourteen: Explaining Again

Disclaimer: Champions isn't mine, nor is Mass Effect. Darkling's however are mine.

Note From The Shadows: I'm not gonna pretend to keep updates regular, I think I've proven I can't, but I'll try not to make the three of you who read this wait three months again, that was mean of me, sorry. Most of this chapter is Maranka explaining the situation with Kasin once again, in a bit more detail. Without further ado... Onwards!

**[Chapter Fourteen: Explaining Again]**

I didn't want to tell Shepard about the letter. Not at first. Wasn't sure I would at all- hey, Kasin scares the _shit_ out of me. He'd scare anyone. Even on the darkling homeworld, he scares pretty much everyone, and here? Where most people don't have magic, or any sort of defense against it? Hell, he'd kill them- kill the people I had started to call friend. Could I live with that? Could I live with myself, if he did? ...Probably not.

In the end, I decided to hold off on telling anyone. I dove into tomes of magic, known and forgotten, light and dark, whatever, looking for something, anything, that could give us an advantage, and edge. To keep him from killing us, keep him from _winning._

It was during one of my studies that the assassin came in. I didn't even notice, lips moving silently as I mouthed the incantation for a spell I was researching, one I intended to try as soon as possible. I traced the draconian letters as I read, until the feeling of someone touching my shoulder lightly broke me out of my trance. My hand shot out immediately, gripping his wrist in a vice grip as every muscle tensed.

After a moment, I felt him start to remove his hand. "Miss Goto is worried about you."Recognizing the gravely voice, I blushed a bright purple, and released his wrist instantly. "Sorry... She shouldn't be, though, I'm fine. Just... Researching." I shut the heavy tome, returning it to inside my cape, then turned to look at him.

I'll give him one thing- it's hard to tell what he's thinking or feeling, _'Fency doesn't even hold a candle to this guy...'_ I thought absently. "Everything's fine, really," I insisted when he stayed silent. "I'm just a little stressed at the moment, worried." He was quiet for a few more moments, concern flickering in his eyes- reminding me of Jraan, almost. Then- "Would you like to talk about it?"

I hesitated. Talking- I'll be the first to admit, I'm not very good at it. I don't like talking- the words get jumbled up in my skull, bouncing around until I can't figure out how to explain what I'm trying to say. But still... I sighed. "Sit down then. It's... A very long story."

I waited until he was settled, seated on the edge of the bed, then shut my eyes. Had to. That display of weakness in front of Shepard- that wouldn't happen again. Couldn't happen again. Hadn't I learned? If you show people a weakness, they'll use it against you. I took a moment to get my thoughts in order, then began speaking, softly. "I was twenty-five. In my culture, among the nobles especially, arranged marriages are common. My parents had betrothed me to a man named Kasin Riados- a blood mage. A monster."

I took a breath, hesitating. "The day of the wedding, my grandmother helped me sneak away from the homeworld. And... For a while, I just wandered, Sneaking around, never getting close to anyone, never staying in one place long.


End file.
